Lewis nets a home win
Deadly Darren Lewis delighted the home crowd as his Over-35s title win proved the highlight of the West of England Squash Masters competition at Wolverhampton Lawn Tennis & Squash Club.
Lewis, one of the squash coaches at WLTSC, was previously on the professional tour and has since been successful in many Masters events, keeping that run going during a hugely competitive event in Wolverhampton.
The 38-year-old sealed victory with a straight sets final victory against Jamie Goodrich, and was one of several WLTSC players in action on finals day of a competition that had attracted entries from as far afield as Cornwall and Cumbria.
Cathy Grinsell finished in second place from the round robin of the Ladies Over 60/65s section, and Elaine Radcliffe was also runner-up in the Ladies Over 35/40s Plate, edged out 14-12 in the decisive fifth game against Reka Gay.
The club’s head of squash and racketball, Chris Dawson, was beaten in the final of the Men’s Over 40s Plate.
“I really enjoyed playing in the event at my home club in front of all of the club members who turned up to support, and it was nice to win the competition,” said Lewis.
“There were a lot of members that had come along to watch which was great to see and made me nice and relaxed in my matches which always helps.
“It was a really good tournament with 181 entries which was fantastic.
“Our club has top quality squash facilities and it was great to see it being used to its full potential.
“The tournament really inspires spectators and participants to get on court and play squash and have fun which is what it is all about.”
Operations Manager at WLTSC Marc Hughes was also delighted that the club was selected to host such a popular competition.
“It was a wonderful three days of high-level squash across all the different age groups, and a real honour for us to host the event,” he said.
“There were some excellent achievements from our own members, especially with another in a long line of successes for Darren, but we were equally delighted to be able to showcase our facilities to so many visiting players.”
Jonathan Gliddon, not only a semi-finalist in the Men’s Over-45s event but also Chairman of the England Squash Masters added: “I have played here on a number of occasions in this event and the courts are always in great condition. There were a high number of entries and that makes for a challenging schedule but it all went really well, and the club’s facilities are superb.”
